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Our man Adam reports that teams can start signing their own free agents as early as this afternoon. But the rumor mills have already started churning in earnest. We have this from D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, who's reporting on the Falcons but is hearing ancillary information about other teams in connection with that reporting. This particular report contains the following two items of interest to fans of the NFC East:

-Vikings defensive end Ray Edwards "is expected to land in Philadelphia."

-Falcons linebacker Stephen Nicholas "is headed to the New York Giants."

EdwardsWe've talked about Edwards and Philadelphia before. With Brandon Graham still a major question mark because of his injury, new defensive line coach Jim Washburn is interested in adding a pass-rushing defensive end to play on the side opposite Trent Cole. Edwards might have played in Jared Allen's shadow in Minnesota, but he's shown enough (I think, in particular, of a January 2010 playoff game against the Dallas Cowboys) to make teams think he can be a force on his own. The conventional wisdom now seems to be that Charles Johnson will re-sign with Carolina, which has something like 6,000 free agents and a long way to go to get to the new minimum spending threshold. And while Jason Babin makes some sense because of his ties to Washburn and to Philadelphia, Edwards might well be the best option on the market.

NicholasAs for Nicholas, the nattily bowtied D-Led points out that he opened last season in a reserve role but played his way into a starting spot. And with the Giants having a big-time need at the strongside linebacker position, he makes sense. The name of James Anderson has come up recently for the Giants, but again, Carolina and their free agency/cap situation. Carolina guys might not be as available as some other guys. I've heard Manny Lawson connected with the Giants. I've heard Nick Barnett, if the Packers cut him quickly. Sounds as if the Giants are at least looking for a linebacker, which is a step. Nicholas was credited with 129 tackles over the past two seasons in Atlanta. He didn't have a sack last season, but he did have three the season before.

Pohovani feniks

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Posts : 10360Age : 27Location : Vrsac-Novi Sad

Tuesday was a crazy day and Wednesday should be, too. Gonna be like this for a while, I believe. Fun ride with many twists and turns still ahead. Plenty more today, no doubt including another couple of hits on "First Take" to talk free agency league-wide. But there's always time for the links.

Dallas Cowboys

Todd Archer thinks the cuts the Cowboys made Tuesday show that Jason Garrett has more power in the organization and more pull with owner Jerry Jones than his predecessor, Wade Phillips, ever had. The Roy Williams cut, in particular, was an admit-you-were-wrong-and-move-on decision -- the kind you don't often expect from someone of Jones' wealth and ego. I can only assume that, if Garrett is really calling the shots here to some extent, that's a good thing for Dallas.

No hard feelings, by the way, from Williams, who learned Tuesday he'd be cut and then told Clarence Hill "I would have done the same thing." Roy didn't play well in Dallas, but he sure earned a reputation for carrying himself with class.

New York Giants

Mike Garafolo spoke to Plaxico Burress, who is going to meet face to face with Giants officials today as they work on a possible reunion. Burress is understandably interested (as I'm sure we all are) to see what his meeting will be like with Tom Coughlin, about whom Burress made very critical comments upon his release from prison last month. I imagine that's a conversation that has to happen before any deal gets done. I also imagine this all means the Giants are very worried about Steve Smith's knee.

Mark Herzlich's father apparently grew up a Giants fan in Connecticut. So he's psyched. As is his son, who as we have discussed could be a real low-risk, high-reward signing for the G-men.

Philadelphia Eagles

A report out of Phoenix late Tuesday night said the Eagles were asking the Cardinals for a first-round draft pick and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie in exchange for Kevin Kolb, and that the Cards were offering Rodgers-Cromartie and a second-rounder. Can't hurt to ask, I guess. Personally, I might take the second-rounder and Rodgers-Cromartie if I were the Eagles. But I am not the Eagles, and I have said all along here that it doesn't make sense for the Eagles to deal Kolb unless somebody's compensating him as though he were a starting quarterback. If the Eagles hold firm and the Cardinals balk, you'll see Kolb in Philly, backing up Michael Vick. But I'd still bet something gets done here that makes both sides happy.

Quintin Mikell's contract with the Rams is for four years and $27 million, of which $14 million is guaranteed. Lots of people have been wondering why the Eagles would let Mikell go, and that's your reason. No way they were going that long, or that much money, to keep Mikell when they have Nate Allen and Jaiquawn Jarrett to develop at the safety position. Would it have been nice for Mikell to hang around and help with that development? Sure. But not at a price like that.

Washington Redskins

John Clayton reported early this morning that the Redskins and the Vikings had a tentative deal to send Donovan McNabb to Minnesota as long as McNabb was willing to re-work his contract and take less money to play for the Vikings in 2011. I'm still not sure why McNabb would do that unless he's sure he can't go somewhere else and be guaranteed more playing time, or unless he's worried he'll get cut and lose all of the money. But I guess the latter is a reasonable fear, so we'll see. Fox Sports reported late Tuesday that the deal would be for a 2012 sixth-round pick and maybe a 2013 sixth-rounder, depending on McNabb's 2011 performance. If the Redskins can get anything for McNabb, who I thought they'd have to release, they'll count themselves fortunate.

The Redskins cut punter Josh Bidwell on Tuesday. Mike Jones reports that they have interest in former Bears punter Brad Maynard.

OK, back to it. Anybody who thinks they know what the NFC East landscape will look like 24 hours from now is out of their minds.

Danijel Lg

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The front-runner: The Eagles are going for broke. They've gone all Daniel Snyder on the division and snapped up some of the top defensive free agents. Corner Nnamdi Asomugha is the real deal, and folks who've never seen him because he played in Oakland are going to find that out. The key to everything is QB Michael Vick. If he improves on last season and stays healthy, the Eagles could be tough to beat. If not, the whole "dream team" thing could be a huge swing and miss

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Danijel Lg

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The biggest threat: The Giants won 10 games last season despite making a ton of mistakes along the way. Those are reparable. If Eli Manning reduces his turnovers and some of the rookie defenders develop quickly, the Giants could contend for the playoffs.

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Work to do: Dallas has been pretty quiet in free agency. There is still a ton of talent on the team but Dez Bryant needs to grow up and the defense must play a lot better under new coordinator Rob Ryan. Washington is putting the pieces together. Coach Mike Shanahan is steadily building but QBs John Beck and Rex Grossman don't stack up to the other signal-callers in the division.

Pohovani feniks

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys sought arbitration Sunday for the NFL reducing their salary caps for the next two seasons.

A provision in the new collective bargaining agreement allows the case to be heard by arbitrator Stephen Burbank, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania.

Both teams were penalized for overloading contracts in the 2010 uncapped season despite league warnings to restrict doing so. Washington has been given a $36 million reduction over two years, while Dallas loses $10 million. Each must take at least half the reduction this year.

The NFL Players Association agreed to have the 2012 salary cap set at $120.6 million rather than a lower number and for the Redskins and Cowboys to take those reductions. Otherwise, the cap would have been significantly lower.

The Redskins and Cowboys filed their grievances against the league and players association.

New York Giants owner John Mara, chairman of the league's Management Council, has defended the reductions and said the Redskins and Cowboys were fortunate they didn't lose any draft picks for the violations.

Neither Washington nor Dallas has been shy about signing free agents this year. The Redskins grabbed receivers Pierre Garcon and Joshua Morgan, and safety Brandon Meriweather. They also gave a bigger contract to defensive end Adam Carriker.

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Jason Reid writes that Robert Griffin III has a chance to be the player who redeems Daniel Snyder's entire tenure as owner of the Redskins. That would be some kind of trick, right there.

Rich Campbell spent a whirlwind week in New York City with the new face of the Redskins, and he offers some observations on what young Mr. Griffin is all about. I have to say, my limited experience tells me this is a difficult guy not to like.

Dallas Cowboys

The Cowboys didn't think they'd have a shot at Morris Claiborne. When they found out they did, they were only too happy to trade the Rams their first- and second-round picks to get him. Calvin has the story on how the trade went down. Hey, the kid's a stud. I have no doubt he'll be a great player for Dallas. I just question the wisdom of using two picks on one player, given their many needs. That's all.

Claiborne won't get on the field anytime soon. He had wrist surgery after the combine and looks as though he'll have to miss OTAs and that stuff. But the Cowboys say they expect him for training camp.

Philadelphia Eagles

Fletcher Cox was the player the Eagles wanted, Bob Ford writes -- a help for the present and the future that didn't cost the Eagles either of their second-round picks or their third-rounder to move up and get. I did like the Eagles' move. They can continue to look for starter-caliber guys with three picks tonight.

The Philadelphia Daily News' capsule on Cox has some interesting information about his hometown of Yazoo City, Miss., including its star turn as the butt of a joke in the Chevy Chase movie "Fletch Lives."

New York Giants

Ohm points out that David Wilson might be able to help the Giants in the return game as well as in the running back corps, which is a good point. The Giants appear to love what he brings as a player and an athlete, and will find a spot for him to help. It's what they do.

If the Wilson pick proves anything, on the heels of the Jason Pierre-Paul pick two years ago, it's that the Giants like to take dudes who can do a lot of backfli

Danijel Lg

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The only NFC East team that didn't trade up in the first round is the one that just won the Super Bowl. That gives you a sense of how hungry the division's other three teams are to catch the New York Giants and take their shot at the Lombardi Trophy they were holding up in Indianapolis a few months ago.

The Washington Redskins made their trade-up a month early, dealing away three first-round picks and this year's second-rounder in order to secure the man they believe will be their franchise quarterback. The Dallas Cowboys made theirs Thursday night, when they decided it was worth spending their first- and second-round picks this year to secure the best defensive player in the draft. And the Eagles made theirs a short time later, when the defensive tackle they wanted, Fletcher Cox, fell further than they expected him to fall and the price to move up and get him became reasonable.

But after the top half of the first round, the NFC East teams' drafts went very different ways. The Cowboys, in need of 2012 help at various places on the roster, oddly began picking project players and unknown safeties. The Redskins made some head-scratchers in the middle rounds before getting workmanlike about their offensive line late. And the Eagles had one of those drafts where everything seemed to be falling their way. Time will tell, of course, and there's no way right now to know how any of these players will perform. But here are some thoughts on how it looks in the very early post-draft light.

BEST MOVE

[+] EnlargeFletcher CoxNelson Chenault/US PresswireThe Eagles were able to move up to get their target, Fletcher Cox, without surrendering high draft picks.Washington's trade to get quarterback Robert Griffin III and Dallas' trade to get Morris Claiborne were the headline-grabbers, and I believe that each team will be happy with its first-round pick. But the four high picks the Redskins gave up and the two high picks the Cowboys gave up keep me from labeling either of these the division's "best move" from this year's draft. Washington doesn't have another first-rounder until 2015. And Dallas, which needed help at multiple positions, spent its first two picks on a position they'd already addressed at great cost in free agency. Not enough value in either deal for it to be called a shrewd move.

So I'm giving this to the Eagles' deal to move up and get Cox. Philadelphia arrived at the draft Thursday convinced Cox was the player they wanted, and they believed they might have to move up to No. 6 or 7 to get him. To do that, they likely would have had to surrender at least one of their second-round picks, and they didn't want to pay either of those or their third. Once Cox fell to No. 12, the Eagles were able to move up by surrendering their first-rounder, a fourth-rounder and a seventh-rounder, securing the player they felt was their top target without giving up the picks they wanted to preserve. So while, yes, of course, I consider Griffin and Claiborne better players, I think the Eagles made the best first-round move of any NFC East team -- getting a player who can make a difference for them in the short-term as well as the long-term without handicapping themselves for the draft's second night.

On Friday, the Eagles converted their two second-round picks into a speedy outside linebacker (Mychal Kendricks) and a pass-rushing defensive end (Vinny Curry) and took the quarterback prospect they wanted (Nick Foles) in the third round. That Day 2 haul, compared with what the Cowboys and Redskins were able to get with their Day 2 picks, is what made the Eagles' trade-up the best overall move of the draft in the NFC East.

RISKIEST MOVE

This is a close contest between the two moves that lost out in the first category. It'd be easy to say Griffin, because he cost so much more. But I'm giving this to the Cowboys' trade-up to get Claiborne. It's a tough call, because I think Claiborne may be the best player any NFC East team got in this draft (barely, if at all, ahead of Griffin) and he cost less than Griffin did. But I'm basing this call on the circumstances specific to each team.

The Redskins are taking a big risk, sure, by picking a kid to be their franchise quarterback and telling him they don't have a first-round pick in either of the next two years with which to build around him. But the Redskins had no choice. Their need for Griffin was overwhelming, and they were right to let it overwhelm their priority list for this draft and the next two. Washington hasn't had a franchise quarterback in 20 years, and once they were convinced Griffin could be one, this was a risk worth taking for them. Polls: NFC East draft gradesI do not think, however, that Dallas' need for Claiborne was nearly as great as Washington's need for Griffin. Yes, the Cowboys' secondary was the obvious weak spot of their team last year -- the main reason they fell one game short of the Giants in the division race. But they'd already spent their big free-agent bucks on Brandon Carr and had Mike Jenkins and Orlando Scandrick at cornerback. Does Claiborne have a good chance to be better than any of them? Yes. Could that happen as early as this year? You betcha. But with needs at safety, linebacker, defensive line and offensive line, the Cowboys should have conserved their picks to address multiple needs. They weren't one great cornerback away from being a championship team in 2012, and by trading their top two picks for Claiborne, and then picking project players and reaches the rest of the way, they decided to operate as though that were the case. It's a big risk, and if lingering weaknesses at those other spots do them in this season, they could regret it.

MOST SURPRISING MOVE

Without a doubt, it was the Redskins' selection of Michigan State quarterback Kirk Cousins with the seventh pick of the fourth round Saturday. It was Washington's third pick of the draft and the second that had been used on a quarterback. Their reasoning is that quarterback is a vitally important position at which it's impossible to be too deep, and as long as they make it clear to the players involved and to their fan base that Griffin is the starter and Cousins is the backup, it can work. They can develop Cousins in the backup role, have a player they like in reserve in case Griffin gets hurt and perhaps eventually trade him for something of great value in a league in which quarterbacks are the most prized commodities.

FILE IT AWAY

Nobody in this division does the draft better than the Giants, and it'll be worth remembering that the wide receiver (LSU's Rueben Randle) they picked at the end of the second round was a player they considered taking at the end of the first. Randle is a dynamic talent who now gets a chance to develop behind brilliant and selfless starting wideouts Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz and with the help of quarterback Eli Manning, who has an outstanding record of getting the best out of his receiving targets. Randle could not have been drafted into a better spot for his own development, and he could potentially be an immediate asset for the Giants in the passing game, because he can play the outside spot vacated by free-agent defector Mario Manningham and allow Cruz to stay in the slot position from which he exploded onto the scene in 2011. The Giants managed to combine need picks and value picks at almost every turn in this draft, and their second-rounder may turn out to be their biggest prize.

Danijel Lg

Danijel Lg

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NFC East

Defending champion: New York Giants.New York was a 9-7 team that got hot at the right time last season. The Giants lost running back Brandon Jacobs, wideout Mario Manningham and cornerback Aaron Ross this offseason. They added tight end Martellus Bennett in free agency and traded for linebacker Keith Rivers -- both contributors if not starters. In drafting RB David Wilson, WR Rueben Randle and CB Jayron Hosley in the first three rounds, the Giants fortified depth, which is what they do. Key players from last year's draft class, CB Prince Amukamara, DT Marvin Austin and WR Jerrel Jernigan, will play big roles in 2012.

Biggest threat, based on offseason moves: Philadelphia Eagles.The Eagles didn't make a huge free-agent splash like they did last season and they traded CB Asante Samuel to the Atlanta Falcons. The addition of LB DeMeco Ryans is a major move. He is a leader and all-over-the-field playmaker. Rookie defenders Fletcher Cox, Vinny Curry, Mychal Kendricks and Brandon Boykin could be impactful rotational players right off the bat.

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The QBs in this division are all must-see TV. Manning has two Super Bowl rings and a growing reputation as a clutch performer. Romo had an excellent 2011 season that should quiet some of his critics. Vick started poorly last season, but he became more patient and efficient during the last quarter of the season. RG3 landed with the perfect coach to take advantage of his talents.